Richard Hubbard and the Grain

Pat Ganase reviews the exhibition of woodwork by Richard Hubbard

If you wanted to know about wood, to be able to distinguish mango from mahogany, samaan from sapodilla, have a look at the bowls that Richard Hubbard makes. They will provide anyone an education in identifying this material which may be harvested from trees.

Here is samaan, with its bold contrasting waves of dark and light, sapwood and heartwood. There’s teak with its pale even grain. Reddish-brown mahogany with almost no grain has been used in furniture for generations. Pink poui also called appamat shows off its particular fine grey-black streaks. Sapodilla polishes like a tawny sunset. And who knew that tamarind would be creamy marble with lines like a delicate drawing.

These bowls give permanence to the personalities of the woods from local trees; distinctive fingerprints of colour and texture. The grain tells how they may have been treated by weather and ageing, by fungus and minute creatures which write on the wood after the trees have fallen.

There’s no doubt that Hubbard pays attention to the grain in the woods which he acquires mainly from sawmills, and one particular mill in Mayaro.

His awareness of texture, grain and colour produces bowls and furniture so evocative that they may be considered art.

“I look at the wood, and something comes to mind. Sometimes it takes a while before I have an idea. I’m not sure how it happens,” says Hubbard of his process.

“Maybe I will draw something; most of the time I am the only one who could understand what I have drawn. These drawings could be quite complex with measurements and details.

But they are mainly for my own reference.”

He was introduced to woodworking when he was 12 at boarding school in England.

It was an interest that remained with him through university and a career in marine biology. Since he retired, woodworking has re-entered his space and taken over his thinking. Boards are stacked around and under the house which he built in the 1980s from Guyanese greenheart. He is always on the lookout for trees that have fallen.

Over the last five years – especially in the isolation of covid19 – he has become fully immersed in creating bowls as well as custom-made furniture. This collection is at the Medulla Gallery until early January. Look for his round tables in mahogany. There’s an impressive grand table in samaan and appamat; a chest in appamat.

Admire the ancient roble, hollowed and aged, that Hubbard has turned to decorative shelving units and a cabinet.

Everything is lovingly handmade. Hubbard is a self-taught wood turner using only a few devices acquired mainly for mechanical work. His finishes are intended to protect – polyurethane – or to enhance and add lustre – oils and waxes. His furniture is sturdy and built to last.

More than that, they are works of art. Formed by the character of the tree, the wood calls attention to its origin and authenticity. Shaped by Hubbard’s hand and unerring eye, each piece becomes an heirloom for those who love what’s natural and well-made.

The exhibition Hubbard and the Grain may be seen at Medulla Art Gallery, 37 Fitt Street, Woodbrook. Opening hours Monday to Friday, 11 am-6 pm, Saturday 11 am-2 pm.